Transporting SNF Residents: Choosing the Proper Payer This week the industry experts at Page, Wolfberg and Wirth (www.pwwemslaw.com) posted an excellent article in the EMS Legal Update on EMS1.com regarding how to choose the proper insurance payer when transporting Skilled Nursing Facility residents by ambulance. The information is so important that we decided to share with […]
Medicare Add-On Payments- Time is Running Out! Five Months! Five Months have passed since Senators Stabenow, Roberts, Leahy, Collins and Schumer introduced S. 967 entitled the “Medicare Ambulance Access, Fraud Prevention and Reform Act of 2017” and yet the legislation has not passed. Companion bill H.R. 3236 also remains in limbo. What’s worse- the ambulance […]
Other Methods of Transportation are Contraindicated Medical Necessity Defined We talk a lot about Medical Necessity in the ambulance billing office. Medical necessity and Reasonableness are key in determining whether or not an insurance payer is obligated to pay for ambulance transport, especially for Medicare and Medicaid patients. Title XVIII of the Social Security Act […]
Friday Night Lights, EMS and ICD-10 BLOGGER’S COMMENT – Every year, this week in time, we take a minute to review specific documentation tips when treating sports injuries. Let’s hope we never have to use these skills. Have a safe and enjoyable Friday Night Lights! It all Begins Tonight! Our billing office is located in Pennsylvania […]
Why is S. 967 So Important to the Ambulance Industry? Part I April 27, 2017 Certain dates in history stand out as pivotal to the course and direction of the United States of America. April 27, 2017 will almost certainly stand out as one of those dates for the American ambulance industry if Senate Bill […]
Ready for Visitors? Open Doors Spring is here and that probably means that the doors to your station will be open for some much-needed fresh air. We need to be aware that the public we serve may show up at our stations and offices from time to time. When that happens, will we be ready? […]
Flu-Like Symptoms- How to Document? Spring? Spring has sprung…or has it? Given that we just experienced a major east coast winter snow storm just two weeks ago with New England about to get hammered again, it appears that Mother Nature is a bit confused. The Flu! Because Mother Nature is confused we see a lingering […]
Clear. Clinical. Documentation. CMS Three words with impactful meaning anchor our discussion today. The Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) sets the definition of medical necessity of an ambulance patient that all of us in the ambulance billing industry strictly adhere to. The definition centers on the clinical requirement “where the use of other methods […]
Resources Where They’re Needed A Mini Rant Lately a lot of people are ranting about something. So we hope you’ll indulge us today as we offer up a bit of a mini rant. Those of us who live in the money game of ambulance reimbursement, be it EMS administrator, billing office or provider, have become […]
The Power of the “Pre-Auth”! Necessary Evil! The American healthcare picture has increasingly become more complex. The advent of the Affordable Care Act and other changes have ushered in literally thousands of new healthcare insurance coverage options. These options change all the time and each year new plans with new rules and requirements spring up. […]
